Happijac failed while driving down the interstate!

[ChrisnKaty]

We were just driving down the hwy and one our Happijac jacks fell out and was scraping the ground! We pulled over & tied it up, but are very concerned. They are less than two years old. We bought our camper used in May of 2013, it is a 2012 Eagle Cap 1160. I find it ridiculous that this important and vital part of our TC would fail already. This is our third trip using he camper, and previous owners barely used it. Should we replace jacks? repair? Does anyone know what kind of warranty HJ's carry? Thanks!

[bighatnohorse]

You can never tell when parked in a parking lot, or campground, when some jerk kid on a bike might come by and just do a try out - flipping the lever.
Xnorp (RIP) made a clip ring mod to prevent his jack legs from extending.
Its something that the manufacturer should do to.

[1mtnman]

silversand wrote:
....the flip side of this is: we ALL want to know that this is happening with nearly-new Happijac jacks. The reason is abundantly clear to me why everyone with a truck camper would want to know this: an un-planned dead dropped jack whilst driving down the highway (or any road) could easily rip the side of your camper off, and kill someone driving behind you. That's why EVERYONE should know what happened (along with the model number of the jack it happened with).

Now, the other side of this is: should the OP discuss this with the manufacturer? Sure. This is the 1st contact I would make if this happened to me.

Warranty:

Happijac seems to have a liberal warranty based on anecdotal Posts I've read here on this Forum.

If you want to see how we secure our HJs, PM me.

I totally agree with the above statement.
My only point was that if you really have a problems you should address your problem to the source (manufacturer).
I agree it is fine to alert others who might have the same product.

[BradW]

Quick trip wrote:
I think 1mtnman was wrong to post their reply.
Also they should apologize to the OP.
But the OP was correct in their response!
Good Luck & Drive Safe!

For a life safety issue like this; it is always best to call (not email) the manufacturer. But there is nothing wrong with also asking the question on this forum. Actually it is a good thing since the post may alert others owners to the possibility of their jack failing in the same way.

Brad

[Quick_trip]

I think 1mtnman was wrong to post their reply.
Also they should apologize to the OP.
But the OP was correct in their response!
Good Luck & Drive Safe!

[HMS_Beagle]

If the roll pin is broken, then I could certainly see it unwinding. Jack wouldn't lift the camper either? With properly functioning jacks, this won't be a concern, they will stay where you put them.

I raise them until only about an inch of the inner leg is exposed. This is just before any bottoming of the screw or clicking of the safety clutch. I can see no reason to wind them right to the top. There have been some opinions in the past about an internal O-ring that might keep water out if you wind them right up, but if you have had one apart you know that is incorrect.

[KKELLER14K]

You should also read this....they are not going to give you this info either.http://www.rv.net/forum/index.cfm/fuseaction/thread/tid/22881036.cfm
Depending on the model...as with this jack, if the pin was to fail, and I really don't see how it could, the whole inner leg would drop out. No doubt this would cause some major damage to a TC. There are the type of jack that has a quick drop leg and I have heard of that failing. If you were to have one of these types, I certainly would hold it in place with something as a backup. One of those ideas they can't take back and now as time goes by the fails are coming. Know your jacks!....Chrisnkaty...you as a new member can ask all the questions you want...this is reason we are here, to share information and learn. Don't be swayed by any one person that wants to ruin the party. Hope you get the info you need here and your troubles get resolved.

[MTRhino]

My retention cables are a little more redneck. I just hook a bunjee over the top of the jack mount and put the hook on the other end through the hole in the jack foot. When putting the jacks down I just unhook the end on the jack foot and leave them hanging there until I retract the jack.

[jimh406]

iwon415 wrote:
Can you say Atwoods?

I would have never guessed that some jacks need retention cables. Can you say time for a redesign or real factory solution.

[iwon415]

Can you say Atwoods?

[EfonFred]

Recently had the same thing happen to us and it scared the bejesus out of us! Our dealer explained to us that if the jack is overextended to the point of making a popping noise a little keeper pin will break and the majority of the time, that is how it happens. Ours was an easy fix Our T/C sits on a 4x4 heavy duty Dodge CTD so to clear everything when putting it on and taking it off I probably took the front two jacks a little too far. When off the truck at home the jacks sit on a set of cinder blocks so they don't have to travel as far.

[bobndot]

Here is some info that you might not get from calling HJ . 😉

Home made retention cables for Happijac

This is general HJ maintanance:
http://www.truckcampermagazine.com/camper-tech/ask-the-expert-maintaining-happijac-camper-jacks

[silversand]

....the flip side of this is: we ALL want to know that this is happening with nearly-new Happijac jacks. The reason is abundantly clear to me why everyone with a truck camper would want to know this: an un-planned dead dropped jack whilst driving down the highway (or any road) could easily rip the side of your camper off, and kill someone driving behind you. That's why EVERYONE should know what happened (along with the model number of the jack it happened with).

Now, the other side of this is: should the OP discuss this with the manufacturer? Sure. This is the 1st contact I would make if this happened to me.

Warranty:

Happijac seems to have a liberal warranty based on anecdotal Posts I've read here on this Forum.

If you want to see how we secure our HJs, PM me.

[ChrisnKaty]

HMS I will get back soon w the model we have, we r on road now. And I'll post a follow up of the final diagnosis & repair. Thanks everyone!

[ChrisnKaty]

1mtnman wrote:
I guess I don't understand why you would be asking this kind of question on a forum such as this. There are very few authorities on this media. Granted a lot of opinions but few authorities! You should be addressing you problem to those who made the product.

Excuse me, what kind of question should I ask then? This is a TC forum, and I've got a TC issue. Just seeking out friendly advice from those who might have had the same issue, not your judge-mental attitude. If you've got nothing to say then why bother answering?
Thanks to everyone else for your help. I did in fact call the manufacturer right after posting the question. HJ informed me that they have upgraded the roll pin on the 2013 jacks, which is the part that broke off. The tech also advised that HJ users should never retract the feet to the point of clicking. Funny, that's the opposite advice I got from Camping World where we bought the TC. We haven't been doing that anyway, cuz it didn't seem like a good idea, but who knows what the previous owners did. For now we've tied all four feet up for security until we can replace all four roll pins. If you've got old HJ jacks, check your pins !

[wnjj]

HMS Beagle wrote:
There is a version of Happijac that has a drop leg - basically a way of releasing the motor and brake, which allows the ball screw to unwind under its own weight. A lever engages the brake. What model number Happijac do you have?

On the normal one, there are two mechanisms that keep the jack up: the gear motor and an internal brake. Both would have to fail for the jack to unwind by itself. Either, if working properly, will prevent it.

The one-way brake only prevents the jack from retracting (ie keeps the camper from falling).

If the motor lever is engaged the jack cannot back spin it and fall. I wonder if it was left in the wrong position? Some of my jacks will slowly start to fall when I flip the lever. Others take some pressure on the foot.

Call Happijac (not email). They are excellent with service. They repainted my jacks at nearly 2 years old. They had a bad batch of painting at the time mine were made and they peeled within months. I waited until my 2 year camper warranty was up to deal with any/all issues not noticing the jacks were 1 year warranty. I only had to pay shipping one way.